Rose of War
by CreativeCaffiene
Summary: Five years after graduating from beacon Weiss, Blake, Ruby, and Yang have all gone their separate ways, but now they must reform team RWBY to take down a new deadly villain who is threatening the very peace of Remnant. This is my first story, please leave reviews
1. A New Mission

**Edited 12/22/2014**

It was 12:36 when Ruby arrived at Beacon Academy; it had been five years since she had last been there. Ruby had a meeting with Professor Ozpin at 1:00, twenty-four minutes from now. Ruby walked towards the classes, she knew students would be getting out from class in four minutes and decided to visit an old friend while she waited.

Professor Belladonna glanced at the bell in annoyance as it rang, signaling the end of class," Don't forget the essays due Monday", she called to the swarm of students leaving the room. "Students listen less and less every year "she sighed to herself, she walked over to her desk and began to correct some paper.

_Why didn't I correct these last night _she wondered? She sensed someone in front of her desk but didn't bother to glance up; _it's probably Violet about that Faunus literature report._ "Yes Violet" she asked.

"The visitor giggled, "Blake, my name isn't Violet, its Ruby, you know, the girl who was your team leader for, I don't know, four years".

Blake looked up, startled "Ruby, what are you doing here", "Ozpin called me up last week while I was on a mission, he wanted to speak to me, he sounded kind of worried."

Blake frowned "Well, he has been a little more reserved than usual lately" she shrugged her shoulders "but you'll know why soon enough, so how has life been for you since graduation".

Ruby grabbed a chair and sat down, "It's been good, I must say life is never boring, when I'm not fighting Grim I'm trying to avoid the annoying fans that swarm me like rapier wasps."

Blake grinned, "well what do you expect, being the huntress who ultimately took down Cinder's gang six years ago, also you need to remember, you're the first huntress to ever single handedly take down a goliath." She paused a moment before continuing, "You see Ruby you're a hero, a legend, and well, those fans will always follow you around in the hopes of seeing something."

Ruby slowly nodded her head and glanced at the clock, the time read 12:58, "Sorry Blake, but I got to go, see you after my meeting with Ozpin" she ran out the class door, leaving Blake to her grading.

Blake thought back five years, to the last time she had seen Ruby, at graduation, Ruby was the youngest person to ever graduate from Beacon, at only nineteen years , two years younger than everyone else in the graduating class, also Ruby had had the honor of being class Valedictorian, being chosen over her partner, Weiss Schnee.

_Weiss_, Blake thought, remembering the hot tempered, prideful and loyal heiress, Weiss had trained with her, Ruby, and Ruby's sister Yang, to become a huntress, but had left that life to become President of the Schnee Dust Company, after her father's death.

Yang was another person that Blake thought about, after Yang's mother, Raven, died fighting Grim two years ago, Yang just gave up on being a huntress, she bought a bar on the North side of Vale and, last Blake had heard, she was doing quite nicely. "What I wouldn't give for the good old days", Blake whispered to herself, "The days when we would fight for hours together, side by side, as a team"

"Sorry I'm late," Ruby said, rushing into Ozpin's office.

Professor Ozpin, Head Master at Beacon Academy, looked up at young huntress "Don't worry about it, compared to what I've called you hear for, the matter of a couple of minutes is nothing to worry about". He gestured at the open chair in front of his desk "please, have a seat."

Ruby sat down, a worried look on her face. "What's the matter, you look incredibly worried and when I spoke to Blake earlier she said you hadn't been yourself lately"

Ozpin looked at her and slid a piece of paper across the desk towards her, on the paper was a list of eight names, two of which Ruby recognized. "Nora Valkyrie, Cardin Winchester, and six other names, why are they all on this list".

Ozpin sighed," because they are all dead, murdered by the same individual". Ruby gasped, "What makes you say this". "For one, these were all experienced Huntsmen, not many people are skilled enough to eliminate all of them, also, they were all killed by the same weapon, although we have no idea what kind of weapon it is."

Ruby looked at him, worried "So why am I here?"

"Because, the greatest team to ever come out of this school was Team RWBY and I need you to reassemble that team to take down whoever it is that are hunting huntsmen."

Ruby's laugh cut through the silence that followed this statement, "really, you want me to reassemble RWBY, professor Ozpin, you might not be aware of this, but I haven't spoken to Weiss since graduation five years ago, she hates me, also Yang doesn't want anything to do with being a huntress anymore, she owns three different nightclubs now and that gives her all the excitement she could ever want." Ruby took a breath, "in all honesty Professor, the only person I think I could convince is Blake and that would be team RB, not RWBY."

Ozpin smiled, "I am perfectly aware of all this, but I need you to reassemble your old team, and don't bother trying to convince Blake, I already briefed her on everything, in fact, she waiting by a Bullhead right now, to take you both to Atlas where you will speak to Weiss, as for Yang, I don't know where she is but I think you will have some idea."

Ruby looked at him, an annoyed look on her face, "I didn't have a choice in this matter at all did I" she asked as she walked out the door.

"No, not really" Ozpin replied, settling down to think about nine years ago when he first met Ruby Rose.

"Ma'am, Ma'am"

Weiss Schnee looked in annoyance at her secretary, who had disturbed her from reading a favorite book. The secretary not realizing her boss's mood continued "Ma'am there is a Blake Belladonna and a Ruby Rose here to see you Ma'am"

Weiss looked at the secretary "Send them in" she replied calmly.


	2. Chapter 2 Inventions

**Authors note: so this is the second chapter of my first story I know there might be errors in it, please leave reviews, they are appreciated, I plan on releasing a new story every Tuesday, even though I am releasing this one on a Monday**

**Chapter Two: INVENTIONS**

"And well that is why we need your help Weiss, somebody is hunting us and they need to be stopped" Ruby looked across Weiss's desk at the president of the Schnee Dust Company. While at Beacon Weiss and Ruby had trained together, and had become good friends, unfortunately the day after graduation Weiss had received news of her father's death

. Ruby thought back to that day, a little more than five years ago. _Weis, Ruby half wined, half shouted, how can you just give up on being a huntress, we only graduated from Beacon yesterday. _

_Weiss looked at the girl who, until yesterday when they graduated, had been her team leader, "Ruby my father is dead", she said shouted, through tears of anger and sadness, "If I do not take over the SDC my sister will, and her morals are the same as my fathers, the white fang ceased their attacks on Atlas only one year ago, if another tyrant takes over the SDC and uses cheap faunus labor, who knows what will happen?" Weiss walked out the door, furious and her leader's unwillingness to listen to her. Ruby watched Weiss leave, "Weiss" she called after the retreating figure, "We're supposed to be teammates" _

"Ruby" Weiss looked at the huntress in front of her who hadn't paid attention to a single thing she'd said. "Ruby, why are my words not important to you".

The dark haired huntress looked at her, "Oh, sorry Weiss, I didn't realize you had been talking, I was thinking about other things."

Weiss looked at her former Team leader in annoyance, it had been five years since she had last seen Ruby and she still had the attention span of a five year old that's eaten way to much chocolate. "If you had been listening to me", Weiss began, " you would have been aware of the fact that I am willing to do this mission with you, not because we are friends or anything, but because I respect Huntsmen and I believe whoever is responsible for these murders must be stopped. However, I need to know a lot more details than what you are giving me right now. Such as, where we will be staying, what should I pack, do you need any special dust cartridges etc."

Ruby looked at the president of the Schnee Dust Company in confusion, "Weiss, just what do you mean by special dust cartridges?"

Weiss chuckled, a smug look on her face, "Ruby, for the past five years I have been president of the largest dust company in Remnant, and during that time this company has developed several prototype dust rounds and cartridges for huntsmen to use in the field".

Weiss could tell by the look on Ruby's face that the young huntress hadn't really understood what she'd said, she sighed "Come on Ruby, let me show you what I am talking about" She got up and walked out of her office with Ruby trailing behind.

Blake, who had been quietly waiting in the lobby, looked up at them as they passed, "Where are you two going" she said as she got up to follow. Weiss looked at her, had it really been five years since she had last seen her former teammates?

"I'm taking Ruby down to the labs to show her some of the projects the SDC has been working on, you can come too if you like".

The Schnee Dust Company's weapons lab was one of the most advanced of its kind, from the Dust Cutting Laser to the shooting range the lab was fully equipped to create and blend any kind of dust and dust related materials.

Weiss went to the back wall and pressed on an inconspicuous looking panel. To her left a section of the wall slid back, revealing another room, lined across the left wall were multiple types of weapons, ranging from swords, to battle axes, to rifles to revolvers, and to what appeared to be a flute. The right wall held a work bench with many small instruments for calibrating and fusing dust. The Back wall had what appeared to several suits of armor.

Weiss smiled at the awestruck look on Blake and Ruby's faces. "How do you like my workshop", the platinum blonde girl asked.

Ruby couldn't believe it; she had always had a thing for weapons, and these were some of the most advanced forms of weaponry that she had ever seen. Ruby noticed a familiar shape among all the weapons, "Hey Weiss, is that Myrtenaster?"

Weiss turned and looked at what Ruby was gesturing at, she smiled. "Yes Ruby, that is Myrtenaster, I've been working on customizing it a bit, and it now has eight dust chambers instead of six, also it six oz. lighter than it used to be, giving me more speed in my strikes."

She then beckoned the other two girls over to her workbench, reaching into a small box she pulled out an interestingly colored vial of dust. "This dust is known simply as X-9, it is an experimental dust, made using a combination of fire and wind elements, with a small amount of ice element. The dust is designed so that when it strikes a target the target is immediately engulfed in a fiery tornado, which is then put out by the ice before said target can come to serious harm; the upside is it can incapacitate any opponent while being completely non-lethal."

Weiss then pulled a clip filled with greenish blue rounds out of the box and handed it to Blake. "Here, shoot one of these at that test dummy over there," gesturing to a lifelike decoy that inconspicuously slid out of the wall.

Blake looked at Weiss with some doubt before loading the clip into Gambol Shroud and switching the blade to its pistol form. Blake took aim and fired

Time seemed to stop for the Faunus huntress, she could see the projectile slowly making its way towards the dummy, Weiss and Ruby appeared to be frozen although she could move about like normal, then as quick as it had frozen the time returned to normal.

Blake looked at Weiss in bewilderment and anger, "Weiss what was that, I fired that thing and then the only thing moving normally was me!"

Weiss laughed at the angry Faunus, finally getting ahold of herself she answered, "Blake, that is what I like to call a time bender bullet, it is a precise combination of 45.987% wind dust and 54.013% lightning dust, when fired from a gun it causes the user to move at 500 times their normal speed, and the affect lasts for five seconds, I designed it so that when in a pinch one can just fire one of these and escape their enemy".

Blake looked at her, still a little angry but impressed with the potential of the round. Weiss gestured at the suits of armor, "Last but not least is my piece de résistance, body armor made entirely out of DRF, or Dust Resistant Fabric. It is a material specifically designed so that when worn, enemy Dust attacks will not affect the wearer, also the best part is it is incredibly thin, very light, but extremely durable, and it fits comfortably under article of clothing. It took me three years to develop this material, but with it team RWBY will be well protected against whatever we may come up across."

Weiss smiled at Ruby and Blake. "I have all the ammo we will need to here and Ruby you can get me a list of supplies. So I just have one question, where are we going to from here."

Ruby looked at Weiss with a smile on her face, the Ice Queen looked incredibly eager to see her tech in action, "Now, now we need to go convince my sister to become a huntress again" she replied.

Lie Ren stepped into the medium sized apartment he called home, hanging up StormFlower he walked over to the fridge to get himself a snack. The tall serene huntsman sensed an unfamiliar presence in the room, turning on the light he walked into the living room.

Standing in the middle of the room was an intruder, dressed in black pants and a dark red shirt, with a black overcoat, his eyes were an interesting shade of yellow and his hair appeared to be brown, on top of his head he wore a black fedora, with a red band.

Lie Ren spoke "Why are you here."

The intruder did not reply, silently drawing an interestingly designed weapon, it looked like a shotgun consisting of two barrels; one over the other and on the side was an emblem consisting of a rose over a pair of blades.

Ren looked at the gun pointed at his chest and wondered what he had done to deserve death, he never got get an answer before the man fired, thirty small red balls of dust shot out of the barrel, thudding into Ren's chest.

Ren flew into the wall, bleeding but still alive, he glared at the man, while wondering if he could get to StormFlower before this intruder killed him, unfortunately the answer was no, the man fired the second barrel and a large slug hit Ren square in the chest, causing the dust embedded in him to explode.

Slate Rose, satisfied that his job was done, turned off all the lights, locked the door, and walked off into the night, mentally checking another name off of his list.

**A/N Please don't hate me for that ending, these huntress's and huntsman must die for the greater good of plot**


	3. Point of no return

**Chapter 3: Point of No Return**

**A/N **

**Hey just saying that while the first to chapters were incredibly jumbled I fixed that with this chapter. Please leave reviews, (F.Y.I. I prefer if the reviews are about the plot, not the format.)**

Ruby, Weiss, and Blake landed at the Vale airship dock two nights later, after renting separate rooms at the Grand Citadel, Vale's most luxurious hotel; the three huntresses hailed a cab and made their way towards the Golden Rose, Yang's largest nightclub.

On the way there they looked at the newspaper in the back of the cab; the headlines read: HUNTSMAN FOUND DEAD, and underneath was written, "Lie Ren, graduate of Beacon Academy and renowned huntsman, was found dead last night in his small apartment; police are currently refusing to release the cause of death." The girls looked at each other grimly.

When they got to the Golden Rose, they could see a large line stretching from the door to the front of the auto parts store, two blocks down. Ruby beckoned to the other girls. "Come on, I know of a secret entrance Yang had built in to the place so she could slip in and out unawares"

As Ruby started to walk through the alley that ran behind the club, Weiss looked at her with some doubt. "Ruby", she began, "are you sure your sister is going to be pleased about us trying to recruit her into doing this mission. I mean, she did say that she never again wanted to be affiliated with the huntsmen or huntresses of Remnant"

Ruby laughed as she pushed in one of the bricks on the side of the club building. A small doorway opened, which they all walked through and into a medium-sized, dimly-lit room. Ruby walked to the walls, and flipped a switch; two stage lights shined down on a boxing ring in the far corner. Ruby smiled slightly. "This is why I believe Yang will agree; even though she gave up on being a huntress, she could never give up on the thrill of the fight. Yang needs the adrenaline, she needs the excitement, and she needs to be helping others. She boxes amateur matches every Friday, and gives all her winning to charity to fulfill these needs. But I believe that even though boxing satisfies some of her thirst for adventure, she still craves the opportunity to make a large difference in the world. Also, I know she will want to avenge the death of her fellow huntsmen."

Weiss looked at Ruby; still not sure that Yang would be willing to join them. "Ruby, she gave up on being a huntress because her mother died living this life; she didn't avenge Raven's death then, why will she avenge these deaths now?"

Ruby was silent. For the first time since they had picked up Weiss, Ruby's confidence faltered. She hadn't thought about that; so sure that her sister would just gladly drop everything, and become a huntress again. She knew that Yang wanted to help others, but she hadn't thought about what had caused Yang to leave this life in the first place. "I don't know Weiss." she finally said, "I just hope that she will."

The three huntresses walked out of the room and into the main floor of the club. A band was playing on the stage; Blake could tell from the songs that it was the Achieve Men, Yang's favorite band and one of the most popular bands in Remnant.

"Ruby, Blake, Weiss! What are you doing here?" a voice called out from near the back of the room; the three girls turned around, and saw Yang walking towards them. She smiled at the trio, "How long has it been, five years?"

Blake smiled ever so slightly; her former partner hadn't changed much. She was still the same happy-go-lucky girl that she had always been; although there seemed to be a small amount of sadness reflected in her eyes. "Yes it has. So Yang, how have you been?"

Yang smiled, "Oh it's been great; I have three great clubs, I became the manager of the Achieve Men last year, and I have a boxing match every Friday. What more could I want?"

Ruby spoke up, "You could possibly want to do one more mission with us."

Yang's eyes hardened and the smile vanished. "Look guys, I left that life behind. If you want to risk your lives constantly, you can, but too many people I've cared about have died in that life; and well, I don't want to watch anymore people in my life die."

Ruby looked at her, eyes full of sadness. Her sister had left the life of a huntress after her mother's death, but, unbeknownst to the others, there had been another death involved as well. Yang had fallen in love with a huntsman named Talon Steele; they had been planning on getting married, but he had fallen in battle only two days after Yang received news of Raven's death. This was the real reason that Yang vowed to never again be a huntsman. "Yang, people die in the life of a huntsman; people die in everyday life, in every occupation, not just this one, but currently, people in this life are dying at an alarming rate; and we need to know why so that we can stop it."

Weiss said casually, "Yang, I understand that you left because of Raven's death, but we need you to come back into the field. Nora is dead, Ren is dead, and seven other huntsmen are dead. I don't know if that means anything to you, but to us it means a lot. Someone is hunting huntsmen; we don't know why, and there doesn't seem to be any connection between any of the deceased."

Yang looked at Weiss, her eyes blazing red, flames appearing to stream out from her hair. "I did not leave because of Raven's death; I left because of many people's deaths! Also, what do you mean there is no connection between all these murders? Ren is dead, and Nora is dead; therefore we can conclude that there is a connection."

Weiss, Ruby, and Blake looked at each other, feeling foolish for not realizing this; then Ruby realized one small problem. "Yang, that is only a connection between two of the murders; there are seven more murders that don't have any connection. Even if all the murder victims are partners with another person on the list, why has Dove not been killed? He was Cardin's partner, and last I checked; he was still instructing combat up at Beacon."

Blake smiled, "Yeah, he's still at Beacon, and I don't think there is any chance of him dying. He lives on campus now so there is no way anyone can get to him."

Ruby looked at Yang, "So you in?"

Yang was still blazing with anger, and had only calmed down slightly; she was angry, angry at Raven for dying, angry at Talon for dying, angry at her old team for trying to drag her back in to a life she swore to never live again, and angry at herself for giving up on a life she loved. She thought about it for a while, and then looked at her sister, "I'm in, but on one condition; Valia comes with."

Ruby was puzzled, "Valia?"

"Valia is my apprentice. She's an orphan I met two years ago; she wants more than anything to be a huntress, and even though I try to tell her it is a horrible idea, she refuses to be dissuaded. So I've been training her to fight. One more year, and she will be old enough to apply for Beacon. I figure if I am going on a mission, it will be good for Valia to get some field experience as well. So is that okay?

Blake softly spoke, "I was younger than sixteen when I first did what you would call a mission, even though I was with the White Fang. Bring her with; the experience shouldn't harm her."

Yang smiled; even though she wasn't exactly pleased to be going into the field, she was glad that Valia would be gaining some combat experience. "So, where to now?"

Ruby spoke, pleased that her sister was willing to help, "We are going back to Beacon to tell Ozpin that team RWBY is back."

Slate got off the bullhead that had taken him from Atlas to Vale. It had been a long time since he had been to Beacon, and he didn't relish going back. But, his next target was employed there; so that was where he needed to be. As he walked through the night, his mind went back to the first time he had ever been to Beacon.

**Thirty-Five Years Earlier**

Slate stepped off the airship that had taken him from Mistral to the famed Beacon Academy; he had passed his entrance exam with flying colors, and was looking forward to attending school with his sister, who was two years ahead of him. He was a tall boy with interestingly-colored yellow eyes and dark red hair. He wore a dark red polo shirt and black slacks with a black cape. As he walked towards the front entrance a girl approached him.

"Hey Slate, how you been?"

Slate looked towards the girl; it was his sister Summer Rose. She wore a long white dress, with red accents. At her side was a small axe shaped weapon; in her light yellow hair, she wore an orange ribbon, and like her brother, also had yellow eyes. He smiled, "I've been good. With you away at school, I didn't really have anyone to talk to; so I took to reading. Did you know, that a dust crystal that is 23% fire, 47% wind, 12% lightning, and 18% ice is the most stable form of dust known to man? No matter what you do to it, it will not explode. But when harnessed properly, it is the most powerful form of dust, capable of destroying anybody's semblance."

Summer laughed. Slate had always been fascinated with dust, and she found it humorous that her brother had quoted that fact to her. She smiled at him, "and I suppose that that is the dust that you use in DarkShadow," she said, gesturing to the shotgun like weapon at Slate's hip.

Slate's face took on a very grim and serious look. "No Summer, it is not, that dust combination should never be used in any weapon, it is too powerful. Also it is unknown if a dust crystal of that type can even be made. All attempts to make it have failed." He looked at his sister, and smiled, "So even if I wanted that type of dust, it is highly unlikely that I would ever get it."

Summer smiled at her brother and grabbed his hand, "Come on Slate, the opening speech will begin shortly, and you do not want to miss it."

Hand in hand, the two walked towards the academy. Brother and sister, one destined for darkness, and one destined for light.


	4. Dust is a funny thing

**A/N. So in my last chapter there was a flashback, and in this chapter there is one as well I am wondering whether or not these are a good idea, so please tell me what you think in the reviews**

**Chapter Four: What is Dust?**

Ruby, Weiss, and Blake followed Yang down a back alley towards a small, shady looking apartment; Yang turned and looked at the three girls following her. "This is where Valia lives, please do not judge, it's not much but it is her home."

Blake looked at her teammate. "I believe I speak for all this team when I say this, we would never judge somebody for their position in life, if there is one thing we learned at beacon it is this. Never look down on somebody for their walk in life."

The other two girls nodded their heads in agreement. Yang smiled. "I'll go in and get her, you just told me but you wouldn't judge but that does not change the fact that Valia is very self-conscious, so you three just wait out here." She then proceeded to go inside the building.

Ruby smiled, thinking about what Valia would be like, on the way to the apartment Yang had done nothing but talk about how skilled at combat her apprentice was, although she had incredibly vague about how Valia fought, or what her weapon was for that matter.

Weiss spoke, breaking the silence. "So, how do you guys feel about bringing a new kid along?"

Blake shot a glare in Weiss's direction. "Weiss, we were just a year older than her when we started our hunt for Torchwick, so no, she is not too young."

Yang walked out of the apartment, behind her was a young girl, with very dark brown hair, and sky blue eyes, she was wearing a green ankle length dress. She seemed to bear no weapon but on her wrists were bracelets with six small dust filled vials.

Valia spoke. "So this is team RWBY, my mentor spoke highly of you, although she never mentioned that she intended to rejoin the team."

Yang smiled at the girl, "well, I didn't, but" she said, gesturing toward Ruby, "my sister and my team managed to convince me otherwise."

Valia nodded her head, than looked towards Ruby. "I understand that you are needing to go on a mission and Yang believes it would be good for me to go, however, before I go on this mission I would like one favor from you, Ruby."

Ruby looked at Yang, looking to see if her sister had any idea what was going on, the smile on Yang's face told her the answer was yes. Turning to Valia she asked, "Ok, what do you want."

For the first time since she had come out of the apartment Valia smiled, "I want to challenge you to a sparring match"

Ruby looked at the dark haired girl in shock. "WHAT" she shouted.

Yang realized that Ruby was concerned about fighting so she quickly reassured her, "It will be perfectly safe, Valia has a method of using to create a shield that will keep combatants from harm. She uses it all the time when we spar"

Ruby sighed, not wanting to fight the girl but not really seeing much of a choice. "Alright then, let's go to the Beacon training grounds."

When the got there Valia gasped, she had seen Beacon before and the sheer splendor of it was overwhelming to her. "This is it!" She followed team RWBY over to the outdoor training grounds.

Ruby turned and looked at Valia, "You have fifteen minutes to warm up and stretch, then we'll fight."

Weiss handed Ruby a red cape with black rose on the back. "Here, this is made out of DRF so it should protect you a bit."

Ruby smiled at her former teammate, "glad to see you still care about me Weiss." Weiss just shook her head and walked away.

After the fifteen minutes were up Valia and Ruby shook hand in the center of the field. Blake, who was judging the competition, spoke. "OK, I want a good, clean fight, Rules are simple, you fight for twelve minutes, and at the end of those twelve minutes Weiss, Yang, and I will score you two and decide the victor." Ruby and Valia walked towards opposite sides of the field. Blake raised her hand, "Ready, Fight."

Ruby and Valia walked towards the center of the field. They began to circle each other, each waiting for the other to strike first. Valia attacked first, two transparent swords appeared in her hands and she swung at Ruby, Ruby blocked this attack, and then skillfully parried, swinging at the girl's feet. Jumping out of the way Valia threw what appeared to be a ball of dust at the ground, when it hit ice spread out in all directions, seemingly trapping Ruby. Ruby fired Crescent Rose out the ice freeing herself. Valia responded by launching a ball of flame out of her hands. Ruby twirled, the Dust Resistant Fabric of her cape blocking the shot.

Back and forth the two contestants, fought, sometimes Ruby appearing to be in the lead, using her scythes greater reach to keep the younger girl at bay, and at other times Valia seemed to be ahead, manipulating dust in ways never before seen by Ruby. Finally Blake raised her hand, signifying that there was one minute left.

Valia leapt into the air and hovered above the ground, from her bracelets lightning seemed to shoot out, hitting the ground on both sides of Ruby. The ground around Ruby then rose up, trapping her in a stone cage that gave her no room to swing Crescent Rose.

Ruby spoke, "I yield."

Valia made a small motion with her hand and the stone cage receded into the ground, freeing Ruby. Ruby spoke, "How did you do that."

Valia grinned, helping Ruby dust herself off, "My semblance is Dust manipulation, I am able to do things with dust that most people can't, including deactivating someone else's semblance, which is the reason you couldn't dodge that last attack."

Ruby was about to say something in response when she notices what appeared to be a shadow running from the direction of the dorms. Not knowing why she ran to the staff dorms with the rest of team RWBY trailing behind her. Seeing a door ajar she entered, inside lay Dove Bronzewing, with two daggers imbedded in his chest.

Slate quietly slipped out of Beacon's gates and walked toward the vehicle that awaited him. Getting into the backseat he spoke to his driver, "Summon the Demons of DAHL, tell them to initiate war." The driver nodded his head and picked up the scroll lying next to him.

Slate thought back to the kill he had just made, it was done sloppily, but that was purposeful, he had no doubt Ozpin would guess who had pulled off the assassination, and that was exactly what he wanted. Being at Beacon had brought back memories of his first day of Initiation, something he wished not to remember.

**Emerald Forest, 35 Years Ago**

Slate ran through the forest, the students had been told by Professor Verde they would be partnered up with the first person they made eye contact with, Slate did not relish being on a team with someone but he had known it would happen.

Hearing sounds of conflict Slate went to investigate, he hid in the trees as he watched an interesting fight occur.

Surrounded four by Ursai was a girl, she had bright red hair and, interestingly enough, red eyes. She was fighting with two dust charged short swords but was not going on the offensive against the Grimm.

Every time the Ursai attacked she would leap out of the way, allowing them to crash into each other as she was not where they thought she would be, and, each time she leapt she would strike one of them on the back of the neck, weakening the creature. As Slate watched this he realized the only reason she had not killed the beasts was she was waiting for someone to appear so she could assess their combat abilities.

Slate smiled, drawing DarkShadow he walked into the clearing, he fired four times, and the Ursai dropped to the ground, dead.

The girl looked at him, her voice, when she spoke was soft and bubbly, "My names Scarlet Flame, what's yours"

Slate spoke, "My name is Slate Rose."

Scarlet laughed, "You're telling me that your last name is Rose."

He glared at her, angry that she would mock his name. "Yes, do you have a problem with it."

She laughed again, "Please do not be offended but Rose sounds like the name of a poet, and you look much more like a soldier, a warrior."

Slate looked at her, finally understanding the humor of his own last name. "Yes, I am a soldier, but I am also a poet, so Rose dose suit me."

Summer finally stopped laughing and looked him square in the eye. "Well then, you are a Rose of War."

Slate thought about that title for a second, Rose of War, he liked the sound of it.

Scarlet's voice broke through his thoughts. "Come on we need to get the relics before they're all gone." Saying this she ran with Slate close behind.

**A/N So please leave reviews.**


	5. Chapter 5: A Forgotten Past

**A/N. So this chapter will be focusing a lot more on Slate Rose .It's going to consist of Ozpin telling Team RWBY about Slate Rose and a Flashback.**

**Chapter 5: A Forgotten Past**

Ozpin stared silently at the two daggers on his desk, recovered from the body of Dove Bronzewing. The daggers were of normal size and shape, however one interesting fact about them was the blades appeared to be made out of dust, not steel. On the hilt of one of the daggers was a small rose, with twin blades crossed behind it, and written on the blade were the words "Legends Never Die".

Ozpin finally stopped staring at the daggers and looked at team RWBY. They looked tired, on account of being up all night answering police questions about what they had seen. Ozpin spoke, "I know who the killer is."

There was a shocked silence following this statement, the girls looking at him with looks of confusion on their faces. Finally Weiss spoke, "Who is it?" she asked.

Ozpin sighed, anger and worry written across his face, "The killer is a man known as Slate Rose, who until today I thought was dead."

Ruby looked at him with shock. "Slate Rose, is he somehow related to me."

Ozpin nodded his head, this was a something that he had hoped he would never have to tell Ruby, but now it looked like he didn't have a choice. "Slate Rose was Summer Rose's brother; and therefore he is your uncle."

Ruby looked at Ozpin confused, "Then why is he killing huntsman, my mother was a great huntress, and if he is her brother than surely he must be like her in some way."

Ozpin shook his head slowly; it pained him to have to tell Ruby about Slate, for this was a subject that was very personal to him. "There is nothing good in Slate Rose, at least, not anymore. There was a time when he was considered a good man but that time is long gone. Now he is someone without morals, he is a man who will do whatever it takes to get what he wants."

Ruby looked at him, "So my uncle is an evil man."

Ozpin shook his head. "No Ruby, Slate is not evil."

Blake then spoke. "Then why is he killing huntsman."

Ozpin looked at all of team RWBY; there was sadness in his eyes, but also a glimmer of hope. "I do not know, all I can say for certain is this, whatever Slate does he does for the greater good of Remnant, no matter how evil it may seem."

Slate got out of his car and walked towards his personal Bullhead. Entering the airship he gestured for his pilot to take off. Slate sat down at a work bench in the rear of the Bullhead. He opened a small drawer and pulled out two vials of dust, one fire the other lightning. Slate opened a second drawer and pulled out two dagger hilts, one with his personal design stamped on it.

Slate emptied the two vials onto his bench in two separate piles and then placed a hilt next each pile. He then stared at the dust and made a slight gesture with his fingers, the dust piles began to rise into the air, intertwining to form a ruddy gray dust. Slate then made a second gesture and the dust separated going towards the hilts. Slate clenched his hand into a fist and the dust stuck fast to the hilts, creating two incredibly sharp blades. Slate then picked up a small tool off his desk and inscribed into one of the blades the words "Legends Never Die."

Slate thought back to when he had first seen heard those words; it was during his formal initiation at Beacon Academy.

**35 Years Earlier**

Professor Verde stood in the front of the large Beacon auditorium. He looked at the four people in front of him and spoke. "Slate Rose, Scarlet Flame, Drake Oceanus and Tanya Evergreen. The four of you retrieved the black arrow pieces, from this day forward you will work together as team ROSE, led by Slate Rose."

The auditorium erupted into applause Slate looked towards the front row and saw his sister clapping wildly, a large smile on her face.

Team Rose walked off the stage and over to the registration table. Now that they were officially a team they would need to register as one and get assigned a team dorm.

As they finished the paperwork Slate turned and saw Summer walking towards him. She smiled at him and spoke. "Congratulations on being a team leader Slate!"

Scarlet looked at Summer and then at Slate and spoke. "Who are you?"

Slate answered for his smiling sister. "Scarlet this is my sister, Summer Rose. Summer this is my teammate, Scarlet Flame."

The two girls talked to each other while Slate turned and looked at the other two members of his Team. Drake had long blue hair and seemed to have a permanent scowl on his face. Tanya seemed to be the polar opposite; she had light blonde hair and joy could be seen in her green eyes. At her side was a short rapier.

Verde spoke from up on the stage, "Today is a great day for the world of Remnant. This is a day in which we celebrate the beginnings of new huntsman and huntresses, guardians of this world. It is today that new heroes join this legendary academy. To learn and train to protect Remnant against the evils of Grim, and other turmoil's that may arise. Now I know that you new huntsman have many things to do before your first day of school tomorrow. Before you all leave I will sing to you an ancient song, known as the Call of the Huntsman. I sing this so that you will always remember why it is that we fight.

_Come all ye Huntsman strong and tall_

_Come now and answer the battle call_

_Come all ye Huntresses to the call of war_

_Come and help defend the poor_

_Pick up your weapons from their dusty shelves_

_Fight for those who cannot fight for themselves_

_The time of Peace is no more_

_Now it is time for War_

_And if you fall while fighting for peace_

_And your heart beat does finally cease_

_Above the place in the ground which you lie_

_Shall be written the words, Legends Never Die._

Slate had heard that song many times before and it always brought a tear to his eye. The reason for this was his father had died in a battle and the words Legends Never Die were on his tombstone.

**Present Day**

Team RWBY left Ozpin's office, confused as to what he meant by Slate does everything for the greater good.

As soon as they had left the room and the door closed Ozpin pressed a button on his desk and a small view screen emerged. James Ironwood's face appeared on the screen. Ozpin spoke. "I was forced to tell Ruby about Slate."

Ironwood sighed. "How much did you tell her?"

"Not much, just that Slate is her uncle and that everything he does is for the greater good. She knows nothing about the dust experiments or the Northern Cliffs."

Ironwood nodded his head slowly. "Good, those are things she must find out for herself. How did he survive?" Ironwood asked

Ozpin shook his head in confusion. "I don't know, we thought Summer had killed him but evidently she did not."

Ironwood looked straight into Ozpin's eyes "Do you still believe he does everything for the greater good?"

Ozpin nodded his head. "Yes, in his own twisted way everything Slate does benefits the people of Remnant."

Ironwood looked at Ozpin with confusion. "Then why did he kill those ten huntsmen."

Ozpin shook his head sadly. "Because they were tasked with the duty of finding hints of strife between the kingdoms and stopping it before it could escalate to a war. I believe Slate found out about this and killed them himself."

Ironwood looked questioningly at Ozpin. "Then does he mean to go to war?"

Ozpin looked at Ironwood with great sadness in his eyes. "Yes, I believe he does plan on going to war, or at least starting one. And if he wants a war, I do not believe there is any way we can stop him."


End file.
